MONTREAL — Our Meet the Buyers event next month will feature presentations from four of Lowe’s Canada’s top merchandisers. Igor Halencak, EVP of Merchandising and Marketing will kick it off with updates on changes at Lowe’s Canada and within his team. Carol Crystal, who heads up the Seasonal and Appliances team, has expertise in categories ranging from lawn and garden to heating and cooling. Josée Dumas will speak about paint, lighting and other Home Decor lines. Marc Gingras is responsible for Building and Maintenance, including LBM and plumbing tools.
For more information and to register click here.
Igor Halencak
Executive Vice-President, Merchandising and Marketing
Igor Halencak joined Lowe’s Canada in October 2013 as Head of Merchandising and Marketing. Following the acquisition of RONA in 2016, he was appointed Vice- President, National Procurement, Central Merchandising & Global Sourcing. He then occupied various positions with increasing responsibilities. Today, as Executive Vice-President, Merchandising and Marketing, Mr. Halencak is responsible for the organization’s entire merchandising and marketing structure, including field merchandising, merchandising operations, eCommerce operations, and marketing for the Lowe’s, RONA, Réno-Dépôt, Dick’s Lumber and Ace Canada banners.
Mr.Halencak has extensive leadership experience in the retail sector. Before joining Lowe’s Canada, he was Senior Vice President, Home & Hardlines and Major Appliances at Sears Canada (2012-2013). He had previously spent 14 years with Loblaw’s Companies Limited, holding increasingly senior positions in merchandising and category management, including that of Vice President, Conventional Grocery.
Carol Crystal
Vice-President, Merchandising – Seasonal & Appliances
Carol Crystal joined the RONA merchandising team in April 2014. She held progressive roles in Fashion Lighting, Appliance and the Seasonal categories at Lowe’s Canada following the acquisition of RONA. In 2018, she worked with the Reno-Depot banner, leveraging assortments from both Lowe’s and Reno-Depot to bring great products to customers across Canada. She is now Vice President of Merchandising for Seasonal and Appliances for Lowe’s, RONA and Reno-Depot.
Carol Crystal has prior experience in the apparel and footwear industries at Walmart Canada and the Hudson’s Bay Company.
Josée Dumas
Vice-President, Merchandising – Home Decor
Josée Dumas has extensive leadership experience in the retail sector, having worked at RONA since the beginning of her career. She began in 1998 as a replenisher for Paint and developed a passion for merchandising. She then held various positions at RONA, now a Lowe’s Canada banner, with increasing responsibilities in this area of the business. As the Vice President of Merchandising for Home Decor, she is now responsible for the home decor team for Lowe’s, RONA and Reno-Depot.
Marc Gingras
Vice-President, Merchandising – Building & Maintenance
Marc Gingras has several years of leadership experience in merchandising, sales and marketing in both the retail and manufacturing sectors. He started working at RONA in August 2013 as a procurement director responsible for Seasonal and Plumbing & Kitchens negotiations. In May 2014, he became Director, Merchandising for the Proximity Network. Following the acquisition of RONA in 2016, he was appointed Divisional Merchandising Vice President for proximity stores, then ultimately for all of RONA stores, including big box stores. Today, as Merchandising Vice President for Building and Maintenance, he is responsible for the Lowe’s, RONA and Reno-Depot banners.
Prior to joining the organization, he held multiple leadership positions for the retail and wholesale division at Belanger(UPT) and Cobra Anchors, and also spent several years managing the merchandising team at drugstore chain Jean Coutu.
